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PhishBucket
is a consumer advocacy blog that tracks and investigates companies who send suspicious job offers. This consumer advocacy blog now finds itself being sued by a notorious former criminal, determined to keep PhishBucket from telling the truth. What started as a relatively innocuous blog posting has turned into a First Amendment battle that will end with all bloggers cringing in fear, or with their First Amendment rights intact.

Reporting on a Nevada Corporation, VeriResume, PhishBucket pointed out flaws in their job offers, and criticized how they appeared to do business. PhishBucket editor, Tabatha Marshall provided her research findings, suggesting that job seekers do their homework before giving away their personal information to this suspicious company. “VeriResume appeared to send emails in a manner that had all the hallmarks of a classic phishing scheme,” said Marshall.

Readers left comments sharing their negative experiences with VeriResume. Many of these comments were less than flattering, but nowhere near as damning as Marshall’s research results. Some suggested that company's operations were illegal. In one comment, a representative of the Girl Scouts of America wrote to say that VeriResume had, without permission, claimed them as a client. This all was in line with an exposé that aired about the company on a major news station.

It turns out that VeriResume is owned by Internet Solutions Corp. (ISC), and Alec Difrawy, who was formerly convicted of and sentenced for fraud. Author Les Henderson recently wrote a book called “Under Investigation,” which discussed Difrawy’s shady criminal past – including similar job agency schemes and allegations of horrific child abuse.

Last October, someone using one of Difrawy’s many aliases emailed Marshall demanding that “incorrect” information about VeriResume be removed. However, he declined to identify what information was “incorrect.” The message was clear. Don’t talk about my company or I’ll sue you.

On November 1, 2007, PhishBucket’s editor Tabatha Marshall received two more “job offers” from companies related to VeriResume -- along with a defamation lawsuit filed in Florida.

The editor of PhishBucket denies the allegations in the suit. “These guys have attributed reader comments to me,” said Marshall. “Even if I had made these statements, I have a First Amendment right to share truthful information with the public. I may not be as big as Consumer Reports, but I try to serve the same function. As always, I encouraged my readers to do their own research and come to their own conclusions.” Marshall said that she would have taken ISC’s concerns to heart if they had been willing to specify what information was incorrect. Instead, they chose to file a lawsuit that Marshall describes as “frivolous.” Marshall appears to be the latest victim of a company that is seeking to silence its critics in a classic SLAPP suit.

Marshall says that once she got the lawsuit, she did some more investigation. It seems that ISC’s business practices are just the tip of the iceberg.

“I found out that Difrawy, in addition to spending time in jail on fraud charges, has been associated with convicted felon Lou Pearlman and has also been connected with other fraudulent career-oriented activities from talent scouting to job brokering,” said Marshall. "Defrawy was also ordered to pay a reported $2.3 million to victims of his activities in the past.” In addition, she noted that Difrawy was the subject of an investigation into fraudulent job postings by WFTV in Orlando, Florida.

The Suit against Marshall was dismissed since it was filed in Florida, whereas the law requires that it be filed in Washington. Instead of filing in the proper court, ISC and Difrawy appealed. First Amendment lawyers Marc Randazza and Gary Edinger agreed to handle the appeal for free.

“If ISC’s case had merit, they would have filed it in Washington instead of dragging [Ms. Marshall] through the courts here,” said Randazza. “This lawsuit does not appear to have any validity. It is for this reason that we agreed to defend Ms. Marshall’s First Amendment rights for free.”

Marshall stands by her research on VeriResume and says that she has the data to back it up. She claims that if ISC had defined the so-called “errors” and provided proof, she would have updated the article and pushed it up to the top of her blog so that readers would know about it right away. “I always give companies the right to rebut information about them,” said Marshall.

“I think that ISC is trying to scare its critics and is just trying to bully people who seem like they can’t financially defend themselves,” said Marshall. "It seems funny that the WFTV story was so much worse than anything on my blog, but they never sued them. Of course, WFTV can afford a lawyer a lot more readily than I can.”

Randazza said that he isn’t just taking the case out of altruism toward Marshall. “If ISC and Difrawy prevail in this appeal, it will mean that anyone who writes any consumer report will be forced to be dragged into courts thousands of miles from home,” he said. “This would not only be unprecedented, but it would mean the end of consumer journalism, travel journalism, and blogging as we know it.”

I recently went for two interviews at Three Stars Media and this was my experience. I am hoping someone closes this company down !! It's hard enough to find a job in this market but when you get scammed like this, it becomes VERY demoralizing.
I applied for TWO jobs on CareerBuilder.com : Administrative Assistant and Human Resources Assistant.
Click here to see the actual postings as they appeared on Careerbuilder.com : http://i44.tinypic.com/11rrxa9.jpg and http://i39.tinypic.com/jj5qgy.jpg . NOTE: CLICK the pics to make the image larger to be able to read it. This applies for all future photo links.
I received and automated e-mail back from Three Stars, Inc. the next day requesting to set up an "initial interview" : http://i42.tinypic.com/s4t6br.jpg .
I went to the website and registered for an initial interview. The ENTIRE interview set up process was automated.
I received a confirmation e-mail for the "initial interview" : http://i41.tinypic.com/6hi88n.jpg .
And a reminder e-mail : http://i43.tinypic.com/wbz5mp.jpg . This reminding cements the thinking that the job interview is important. They want to make sure you show up.
I put the words "initial interview" in quotes above because there was NO interview on my first visit to Three Stars. Here is how the first visit played out.
I arrived at Suite 211 and the receptionist asked for my resume. She then handed me a white binder with laminated pages to view information for a "Verification Specialist". I quickly paged through this booklet because I already knew what was coming next. I have to admit, I didn't pay attention much to the laminated pages because I had a friend who interviewed a few weeks prior for a Sales Manager position and she told me the first interview was just an assessment test.
After flipping through the laminated booklet, I then handed the book back to the receptionist. She told me I needed to take an assessment test (I think the binder info alluded to this too) and she told me she needed to take a picture of me as they "have so many people coming through their doors" and needed to take the photo for "identification purposes". I complied and let her snap my photo. She then guided me through a door opening to a room with several computers and little cubicles dividing the individuals taking the test. She opened the test on a PC, told me I had 30 mins. to take it and she told me I could use a calculator and she opened the calculator on the desktop. She told me to log in to take the test using my e-mail address and my last name. I then saw all my person info (name, address , etc. as well as the pic she just snapped of me) and then was taken to the test. I don't remember all the questions but I found a few questions quite odd. One asked "Are you over 24 years of age? " another asked (not sure of exact wording) "We have part time work at home positions for individuals. Would you be interested in this position or would you like to stick with the position you applied for?" I selected to stick with my current job I applied for. And there were some questions on advertising: "What are advertising verticals?", "What are five of the top 100 Internet websites?". There was also three vocabulary questions (the only one I remember was the meaning of the word "CONVERGE", there were two other vocab words used in sentences, I can't remember, something about Freud). There were also some Math questions. From memory, I think there were three in total, two word problems (one something about cutting a piece of wood into three pieces and the other was an algebra question, I think it was "2x - 4 = 6" and another odd question was "If you knew you would be fired for admitting a mistake would you lie to save your job?" . There were other questions on the test but these certain questions stood out to me.
I left the computer room and the receptionist handed me a business card (http://i44.tinypic.com/p7vus.jpg ) and told me to log on to their website with my e-mail address and last name after 10am the next day to check my application status :
When I logged on the next morning the website had a message (after I logged in) showing that my "aptitude test was impressive" and they wanted to meet with me for a second interview. I scheduled the second interview and got another confirmation e-mail : http://i40.tinypic.com/97440m.jpg .
And again, another reminder e-mail for the second interview : http://i43.tinypic.com/30cuc8o.jpg . They really wanted to make sure I showed up !
I arrived for my second interview at Suite 217 and walked into a foyer with dark lighting and no one to greet me. I saw a big conference table with better lighting and big leather chairs and a projector. I sat down next to two women who were waiting for their "interview". One of the women asked me "what are we doing here? What's going to go on I wonder ?" - the both laughed nervously. I told her that first we would get a presentation, then tour, then have individual interviews. This was the experience of my friend. In reality, I misunderstood my friend - there was no individual interview after the tour, it was a group interview telling everyone that they would be getting a phone call if they were interested. Again, my friend when there for a sales job, NOT the jobs I had applied to for Admin Asst. and Human Resources Asst.
Eventually, more people filtered in. We had 10 in our meeting. A woman named Crissy W (WAH Advisor Regional Manager - according to their website. Go to http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=9 and click on the little girl being hugged by Mickey Mouse to see her pic and info) was our cheerleader for the next couple of hours. She first asked us to go around the room and introduce ourselves. She then told us about herself (she was a dancer and worked at Disney, although that didn't pay the bills and then she spoke about the company. Started in 2004, now has over 500 employees and also a team in India. She explained the role of the Verification Specialist and explained that they don't show the job name in their listings online because "no one would know what that job is and no one would apply for it". So she admits up front that the jobs that brought all of us in DID NOT EXIST, but not in those exact words. My Human Resources Assistant and Administrative Assistant jobs were not real open jobs at the company! We were told that Three Stars also had a website called "Career Network" and that they are going after Monster.com and Careerbuilder.com. She said that it costs a company $ 400 to post a job on those websites while their Career Network offers postings for only $ 99 and they initially started out by posting those ads for FREE in the beginning. She also showed up a clip on News Channel 13 where the company donated toys for charity (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxXZd0u0dOE&feature=channel_page ) and talked up how they give back to the community. She also talked about their free happy hour, dinners at the Executive Managers house, and their co-ed flag football (http://threestarsinc.com/fun/eventsIndex.cfm ) . She then proceeded to give us a tour of the company. We all piled in the elevator and headed up to the 4th floor (from the 2nd floor) and first toured an office of people posting jobs on Craigslist and other websites, according to Crissy. The workers pretty much ignored us, except for one guy who watched the whole show. All of us idiots, in suits, all there for fake jobs. I could only think as I saw them sitting at their desks that these people were creating the same fake jobs that brought us in. Crissy said they were creating jobs from "their business clients". We were then lead to Human Resources and introduced to a manager named Dahlia who told us she has been with the company 7 months and LOVES it. She told us that "it's a long interview process, but stick with it" and she wished us all good luck.
Next up was the division that we saw the people in action who were Verification Specialists. Basically an auto dialing system will call applicants to tell them that they need to verify information for a job they applied for. When they call back, they go to this department. These people follow a script, verify certain info and then plug at the end to try and sell school admissions. For some reason a select few people work here vs. the at home position we were offered at the end of the interview. See below.
Next we walked into the webmaster division. First Crissy proceeded to flirt with Darvin K. - Director of Operations - as he showed her a photo that they laughed over, then we were introduced to Kelly R. - Executive Vice President (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=1) and were told that she was the third person hired at the company when it was created out of someone's apartment. Kelly was wearing a flag football jersey. She explained the department was broken down into four departments. I can't remember all but one to come up with design ideas for a website, one to create the website, one to "break it" - quality control, and then it was released. Crissy proudly told us that Kelly created MANY websites. We were then lead to the next department "Employer Services" and met Scott D. - Career Network Director (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=7 ) . We heard him give his spiel. He basically stated that he talks to companies to find out more about the jobs to make sure they post the correct information to get a qualified individual and also to make sure that there employees ask the right questions when they do their verification to pre-qualify candidates for companies. A good story anyway.
Next up, we met Ben D. - Senior Business Analyst (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=1) . Ben told us that he handles SEO and making sure that the websites they create show up in the featured listings on search engines like Google and Yahoo!.
Lastly, we met Matt A. - WAH Advisor Regional Manager (http://threestarsinc.com/teams/corpTeams.cfm?dept=9 ) , who was located in Suite 211 in the back offices, behind the computer testing area, who told us what a great company they had because one woman (can't recall her name) had a Mother that fell ill and she needed to move back up North (New Jersey I think?) and how great the company was because even though the woman had to move away she was still able to log on to a computer up there at 9am in NJ the following Monday and continue working. He said they had many employees talking about how expensive gas was and they realized it was a GREAT idea for their employees to work out of the home. Matt was planting the seed here.
And then we were lead across the hall again to Suite 217 and back to the conference room. Crissy's tone TOTALLY changed. No longer a cheerleader and full of friendly energy, she was somber and matter of fact. We were then given two hand outs : one detailing the job outline for the Verification Specialist : and the other for the computer requirements to work at home and the script for the education spiel : . Crissy told us that training started us at $ 10 per hour and we could earn extra money from there, depending on how many people said YES to wanting more information on signing up for education. She claimed she made $ 600 in her first week. She said they like for you to receive 80 -100 calls a day but the record was 150 calls in one day. She estimated that in 15 minutes at least TWO people would say YES to wanting more information about education. She said we were not to push the education, only plant the seed, mentioning it twice, the second time to confirm it. She said they only wanted people who were serious about signing up for classes. She then told us that she realized this job - Verification Specialist - was not for everyone. If we didn't think it was something we'd be interested in, we could leave now. Otherwise stay behind and she left the room to "get paperwork". Everyone was like a deer in the headlights. No one moved. She came back and then asked "ok , we have openings for tomorrow for the phone interview, who is available tomorrow ?" So then, with the peer pressure of everyone watching, she proceeded to ask everyone. Many set up times, signing up by stating the time and then telling Crissy their First name and last initial. One person said "Well, can I have some time to think about it?" "Of course!" - Crissy replied. That was a snowball effect then. Others said they too wanted to think about it.
Here are links to view the Verification Specialist handout : http://i44.tinypic.com/2ishbm8.jpg , http://i39.tinypic.com/wbz5w5.jpg , http://i44.tinypic.com/23rtx8y.jpg , and http://i39.tinypic.com/1y7h8o.jpg .
Here are links to view the Computer requirements and the Education script : http://i44.tinypic.com/1zpqst5.jpg , http://i44.tinypic.com/15x71qp.jpg and http://i41.tinypic.com/n3kht0.jpg . This was what was to be covered in the phone interview. They wanted to hear you read the script and make sure your home did not have background distractions like "a baby crying or dog barking".
I realize this is lengthy but I wanted to give you all a firsthand account for what the Three Stars interviews entail so you don't have to waste your time like I did. If you want work at home job that pays $ 10 an hour plus commissions for planting a seed for education, then this job is for you. It's just a shame they scam, as they say "600 people a week walk through our doors" , into thinking they are on REAL interviews for jobs they applied for online, only to learn it's a telemarketing work at home position instead.
Does Three Stars offer job s? YES, but ONLY the Work at Home "Verification Specialist". NOT the jobs that were posted online. Here is a listing of ALL the jobs supposedly available on the Three Stars website : http://threestarsinc.com/careers/jobIndex.cfm?type=1 . The jobs were the SAME, none were "filled" from the time frame that my friend applied weeks prior. Now I know it's because they simply DO NOT EXIST.
Their claim is that once you master the Verification Specialist job they then like to move you up in the company, depending on what areas you would be best suited for. I wonder how many people are actually moved up. Of course Crissy said she started out (7 months ago, oddly the SAME time Dahlia started with the company) in the Verification Specialist position and worked her way up. Oh and Crissy did tell us all that we did really well on the aptitude test, we were the best of the best, which I now know is a load of bull. The whole thing was a HUGE sales pitch. They made the place look like a fun, young, energetic place to work..and hey ! They even give to charities ! How could they be bad. Forget that that LIED to us to get us all in there in the first place ! I found it odd though that most of the offices did not have fluorescent overhead lights.....only desk lamps. All offices were decorated very attractively. Staging here was key. Another odd thing ? NONE of the suites had the "Three Stars" name on the nameplates.......which was odd because ALL the other offices DID show their names on the nameplate with the Suite number. Their suites simply had the suite number listed on the nameplate.
I just saw on the news today that Channel 9 News WFTV will be showing ANOTHER piece on Three Stars and their false job listings. They even show footage, the room that had the Verification Specialists/Education Counselors in it. Should be interesting to watch. http://www.wftv.com/
Lastly, as I mentioned, my friend also went through this process. Why on earth would I want to go through this? Well, she again went for a Sales Manager position and her second interview included info about the company, the company tour, but then also a pitch to the individuals on the interview to partake in a website called Monkey Jar (http://www.monkeyjar.com/ ) where you create your own "online mall" and you make money supposedly if your friends shop your "mall" by clicking the links to visit the store websites. Interestingly enough, if you click the "About Us" link on Monkey Jar you will see cartoon caricatures of both Kelly and Darvin from Three Stars. So I went on this interview to see how well I would do on the aptitude test and to see if I would do well enough to get the second interview. My friend who went for her Sales Manager second interview was told if they were interested in her they would call her. It makes me wonder what Three Stars got out of her second interview. Maybe advertising to get people to use the Monkey Jar website. Or maybe the whole thing is just a scam to get our personal info : they have our home address, work numbers, employment history, aptitude ratings, heck even a photo of us - that they can use to sell to marketing companies. Here is info about this take on the whole scheme : http://www.nowpublic.com/tech-biz/three-stars-media-new-name-same-scheme . I know this is long, but I hope it helps others from going through this.
Early on in my search, I also received these two e-mail (and many more - too many to post) from Career Network which I now know is also Three Stars : http://i41.tinypic.com/xqgaw3.jpg and http://i39.tinypic.com/2rgjm2o.jpg . I did not like the fact that the company name and phone number were not listed. I e-mailed back asking for this information and did not receive a response. I think these e-mails were generated off jobs I applied for on Craigslist.com. Once you click the link for the fake tech support job you are brought to this website: http://perfectcareercenter.com/JobOffer/Register.cfm?JobPositionID=92050 . Notice the questions at the bottom regarding education. You guessed it...this is so a Three Stars work at home Verification Rep. can call you back and ask if you are interested in furthering your education. The website is called : perfectcareercenter.com but if you click the about us link it shows that this is Three Stars. So when you search for a job online today you have NO IDEA if the job you are apply for is real or if it's yet another Three Stars fake job website. I think networking to find a job today is best way to not get scammed. Happy job hunting everyone...be careful out there. At least Three Stars didn't ask for my social security number at any point. I feel very sorry for job seekers that DO offer this information online. :-(

Brian
- Wanna get even?

|2009-12-01 08:57:23

Instead of telling my own duped story, lemme just say I have done a lot of research on this company. Im still learning each day from reading other stories and accounts of how people coast to coast have been phished of their personal information.
So lets fight fire with fire, as I have done my homework and talked to these people personally.

They have a website http://greatcareersearch.com/ And if you go on onto that site, they have just over two dozen HUGE corporations (a lot of Fortune 500 companies too) on that site. If you click the "About Us" tab you will find out it truly is a Three Stars Media website.
Anyways.....so I google corporate headquarters #'s for these huge companies. I call up and ask for either a marketing or HR rep for information. I get transfered and get someone on the line. Each and every company on that site of logos, they are telling me that they never heard of Three Stars. Now some have claimed they used "staffing companies" and not sure of the names. (they dont have to tell you anyways) But what is confirmed is when I have the HR person of lets say Best Western, they log onto that greatcareersearch website (while on the phone with me) and CONFIRM they have never seen that or heard of Three Stars! Maybe I am not talking to the main website market person for that company, but just saying.

But my main point of the comment is, if they havent used them why are they on Three Stars website? Each and every company told me that if I wanted a job thru them, to just log onto their MAIN website (like Century21.com, which is one of those logos) and click on the Careers link and apply.
So back up and fight fire with fire. Have the huge corporations (which have billions of dollars and very high paid lawyers) to come after these scums. I have brought this to most on that websites attention. It would be nice for others from around this country to do the same!
Also (speaking on the phone with Tabathas lawyer) take a picture of these sites, and keep a file handy.

Logic tells me when they "claim" these corporations are their "employers" I wonder So why do you have to go thru their generic website when we can just go to the main website of the company that has the job position for hire? At least Century 21 is real, or Fed EX is a real company! Three Stars, or Career-Network, not so much! They have a real building, but CANNOT CONFIRM AN ACTUAL JOB (besides the scam jobs within that Orlando office)

So why are they posting generic listings in my area? BTW, according to Keith Kress........"If the posting of the job position is posted in my city, then some "client" of theirs has a job opening there"
Or as I see it, when the generic job position posting on Craigslist is posted, that means that job is needing a worker in my city.

SO TELL ME WHO, WHERE , WHAT , WHEN then! Oh, wait they cannot disclose that cause "they are a national staffing company that cannot give out "client" information" But they take YOUR information and phone number and will "let you know, if you are fit for that position"

You know what fuels me to keep at this? The fact today and onto tomorrow, thousands and thousands of Americans will be reading these postings and giving their information in hopes of trying to get work in this nation. And this company CANNOT and WILLNOT tell us of any real jobs! Keith is real. Kelly is real. I have phone numbers that take you right to them, to talk with today. But the jobs simply cannot be.
If I walked into a local staffing company where I live, of course I get the same response back. Staffing companies cannot tell who their clients are, cause then you would just show up at their door and the staffing company doesnt get their cut of the money!
BUT....walking into a local staffing company and not wanting a job, but curious what there was, I bet someone would tell you of a REAL job in your local area that they had someone get hired on from!
Think about that one. So maybe the whole "staffing" run-around is cute to Keith, but not buying it on my end.

And at best, why would a person in California want to use a staffing company out of Orlando? Wouldnt you want a "staffing company" to be local too? Most people sending their info to these crooks dont realize that from the get go. WHY? Cause they dont INFORM YOU of that! I had to do a lot of homework to get the real truth. Most Americans wont go to those lenghts.

Wow, sorry for being a novel. Kind of a Rant, but in all fairness the truth. Please, if you are one of the people (me included) that sent your information to this phishing scam, take the time to call up these corporations that the logos are on the Three Stars Media. As a normal citizen, I wont be able to do much. But Im sure a lawyer from Goldman Sachs can over-power these scums!(yeah, another logo of a HUGE business on a global level).
They told me on the phone to apply on their nice website, by clicking on the Careers link. But I informed them there is another website (the greatcareersearch one) has their logo on it, and I can apply for that job on that website. OH MAN were they upset, and said they were looking into it!

Please do the same, and have this Phishing Scam be terminated! Thank you if you made it this far in my comments. Im sure there is other angles to take, but I doubt you can do better than a Goldman Sachs lawyer......I could be wrong here.

I have filed complaints with the FTC, Better Business Bureau(Central Florida's), and the Internet Crimes divison.
I have been in contact with the main lady in charge of the BBB of Central Florida, and she ALSO thinks this is not a true company. She recieves a lot of complaints, and will be doing something about this as well.

I just know Keith wont be settling my complaints with the BBB, which tells you what kind of a company they are! A REAL company with REAL jobs, would answer my questions and concerns and try to make them an Acredited BBB Business with a great rating! The fact they are an F rating, and NOT Acredited should tell you they dont care about what others think of them.
Also funny how they "hook" new people without ever telling them who they really are! Kinda tough to find out what business you are really dealing with, when they themselves dont include information on the company.

Now if they had REAL jobs, then Keith would follow up with my BBB complaint and explain my questions I had specificly. But since he probably wont (still pending) more and more people are being phished out of their information. What does that tell you about a company that wont settle Better Business Bureau complaints? Im not even in the State of Florida either! And BBB is a Business that informs people (just like this site) of companies that are good or bad.

I think I have made some valid points. I can go on and on, but strength in numbers will prevail here. In all the stories that have been done on this company, still havent heard or seen a REAL job yet! (besides this others poster gof going into that orlando office) Im talking about the postings all across America. Still havent seen or hear of them being real....................

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